To achieve the complex interaction of pattern and visual narrative evident in Absent memories, Scott Chaseling has adapted the ancient Venetian murrini technique, by which a mosaic is formed from sections of glass canes and fused as a flat sheet before being rolled, blown and ground. In this contemporary articulation of murrini’s ancient language of ornamentation, Chaseling achieves his characteristic interaction between comic-book-like narrative imagery and the dense, jewel-like design that is possible with the use of advanced materials. In this work his positioning of images on the inside and outside of the vessel allows different episodes to be read simultaneously, challenging us to comprehend two versions of the one story.